White House leaves press pool behind again

By Byron Tau and Donovan Slack

01/14/12 11:09 AM EST

President Barack Obama again left the White House without some of the reporters assigned to travel everywhere with him.

The White House abruptly changed the call time for media to assemble to 8:15 a.m. this morning, and informed them of this change at 8:16 a.m. As a result, Obama left the White House without a handful of the journalists assigned to write dispatches and reports to other reporters. The president traditionally travels with members of the White House press corps at all times.

Fox's Bree Tracey did manage to make the trip as the television pool, and filed a dispatch reporting that the president and first lady went to their daughter's basketball game.

Still, the hastily assembled trip and the email time stamped after the altered call time have some members of the White House press corps privately steaming. And it's not the first time the White House has abandoned the press corps. In April 2010, the president left for one of his daughter's soccer games two hours before the media was supposed to gather.

UPDATE: White House spokesperson Jamie Smith explains to the pool reporter that "the president decided to attend his daughter’s basketball game. The pool was assembled as soon as possible to be there."